Tag Archives: inspire

Lately it’s been slow going with my knitting and crochet. Due to back and neck issues I’ve been told it’s best to stop, for now.

Well I just don’t want to stop! So I’m going slow and steady. That’s a tall order for this whirling dervish. Alas, I’ve no other choice because 15 minutes into my groove, my ears begin to get congested and my neck hurts and so on and so on.

So, I’m working on slowing down and smelling the roses, or wool! Teehee! I’m exploring the art of not “efforting” and just enjoying the scenery as life dashes by. Now that’s not to say I’m not busy, I’m just not killing myself to do it all….in a day! Ha!

Here are a few projects I’m completing, eventually! It would be nice if they were ready for Christmas, but there’s no guarantee!
There’s’ a hat, scarf, blanket (squares), coasters, placemats, and mug cosy, and they’re only a quarter of the projects I have on the go. These are ones I’ve decided to finish! Maybe by next Christmas? ☺️

Going slow is really tough. And what really bloggles my mind is that even at my slower pace, I still have no time. I mean….I suck at blogging…..especially for the every day in November challenge! I just suck at finding the time every day. So, challenge-fail! 😝, but I still “effort” a little!

Friends ask me regularly “Rhonda, where do you find the time”? And “where do you get your energy”?
Mostly, it’s the thrill of the challenge to do it all; everything that pops into my mind. I love making others happy and see them smile. I’m not particularly funny, but I have my moments, so I get my smiles this way….

I’ve been a busy bee in the kitchen for my friend’s daughter’s 2nd birthday. The hive isn’t my idea, but I put my own embellishments on it!

And of course I can’t forget my friend’s son’s 4th birthday! Same friend! Her kiddies were born around the same date. This cake was my own creation. That said, I followed the mamma’s orders!

Life would be misery without cake!!! And I had gestational diabetes, so I know what I speak of!

I’m taking up the challenge to post every day in November. Enough is enough and I must give blogging some much needed TLC.

Commitment is one of my issues, which carries over into surrender, which carries over into letting go and all the other soul destroying issues our egos sling at us to hold us back, so we can maintain status quo and feel “good”.

Well this post is about my intimate dance with darkness or my ego, and about just letting go of all my “comfort-zone” inducing mechanisms.

I have my shoes…

Let’s dance…

Surrender. Easy to write, but hard to do. Sometimes I have to fight, but often that’s not accurate. I have to have courage to face what may come my way and surrender to the experience be it good or bad.

Courage: To face the abyss of uncertainty and jump anyway!!! There are dreams I want to fulfill, but to have those dreams smashed is less terrifying to me now than never even taking the first step towards them. That really terrifies me!

Well this year I’m jumping finally, and yes, I’m scared of failing. Yep! Plain and simple, but I’m just going to jump in anyway.

Still figuring it all out and riding the ups and downs of life. Trying to create pieces of “happy” as I go. If this is the year of “finding myself”, I can say with certainty that it’s definitely bringing me back to myself, if that’s even the same thing!?! lol Not exactly what I thought would happen, but if we don’t actually lose who we are, then it makes perfect sense that we go back to who we are. It must be my age!! Hahaha! Happy days!!

So this little cotton dress is blissful! Both to make and to look at, and the wee girl it’s for is just gorgeous! She had a 3rd birthday party yesterday; she ended up in her birthday suit! Hopefully this dress will inspire her to keep it on!!! Ha!!! It’s a pattern I got from Australian Knitting, and as usual I put my own embellishments on it!

Betty Cole is busy! She crocheted this beautiful table cloth for her sister Nancy and brother-in-law John.

With a 1.5mm and 10 cotton yarn she constructed the table cloth using a flower square pattern and then kept adding them. I’m so impressed with Betty’s efforts and patience, and the exquisite results. I definitely do not have this level of patience, but aspire to it one day.

I love simple and clean white.
Thanks for sharing your work with us Betty! I just love it!!

Crochet 50 chains on a 3.5 hook with some sparkly yarn, 4 ply. *Sl st 1st chain from hook, and in the back loop of every chain to the end*. Sc in same last chain as last sl st. Chain 49 again! (Double band remember!) and then repeat from * to *. Chain long enough to fit your head (this is the loop that goes around the back of your head) and attach this series of chains with a sl st to the two ends of the bands that sit on the top of your head.

I always change my mind by the end of a project and this one was no different. I did a crab stitch finish around all edges except the bottom. There I went with a single crochet stitch. The velvet ribbon looks brownish in the photo, but it’s a shade of eggplant purple! Strange indeed how the camera does that. I didn’t block it really, but just sprayed a light mist of water on the front and pinned it in place. It was dry in an hour and ready to wrap! Just sew the ribbon so that the two ends meet at the front. I managed to get three wraps with 1.5m of ribbon. I should’ve gone with 2.0m!! Then I could’ve done a bow.

I decided today, it being a new year and everything, to finally work on my one goal: To find myself! I guess I’m not actually lost physically, but as you might have guessed from my previous posts, I’m all about the inner journey, and so my uprooted existence and reliance on others, two things that un-nerve me THE most, have forced me to look at myself and ask the hard questions (that I never thought I’d ask). What I’ve discovered is that I don’t know what I want. I’m torn in too many directions and so I’m left deciding what is or isn’t really me. I’m sure you all have felt this way at least once, maybe? Well, it’s something that has consumed me from the very first time I heard my dearest life partner “hum a tune” as he prepared to go to work each day. The happiness he felt about what he chose as a life long career threw me off kilter. Why was he so happy about work? What did he find so delightful? How could he be excited to go to work?? Of course, I realized quickly that his work was like play! He loved his trade and was thrilled at the prospect that he not only got paid to do it, but that he was allowed to do it! He was qualified to do the work he dreamed of doing and make a living to boot! How totally thrilling!!! I knew then that’s what I wanted too. I’ll return to this storyline as I continue to blog along, but long story short, I have been slowly and steadily making my way to reaching the goal of finding my “play” job, or if truth be told, my dream life since that initial spark of inspiration from Chris 17 yeas ago. I may not “hum a tune” everyday, but finally I’m getting there!!! And this year I will just be “me” and hopefully get there a whole lot faster. No more excuses and distractions, just fearlessness and being me whist humming Nelly Furtado’s ‘Forca’ daily !!

Cast your nets out wide in 2015 my friends and haul’em in with all yer might!!